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PSD4 aging?

Z

ZiZiJohn

New Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2007
Messages
34
Location
Annandale-on-Hudson, NY
Hey guys--

I just received a box of PSD4s from one of the vendors listed on this site. When I was studying in Paris a few years ago, they were my very occasional celebratory smoke, but I'd been missing 'em so I succumbed to temptation. Having realized between now and then how very little I know about cigars, I'm inclined to sock them away for a while in my humdor until I can properly appreciate them.

Leaving aside speculation about my palate and its rate of development, how long should I keep away from these babies and let them sleep? Should I re-investigate in 12 months, or is five years more appropriate? They smelled so good when I broke the seal... this is going to teach me patience.


I realize taste is subjective, but I trust the FOGs around here to give me reasonable advice.

Thanks
John

**edited for clarity**
 
Have one now, then go back to them every 6-12 months and see how they are progressing.
 
Chances are they are a recent box code since that's a popular cigar and older box codes don't last very long in a vendor's inventory. With a whole box to burn, you should go ahead and smoke one now to see how you like them. Then if they are not what you remembered perhaps forget about them for 6 months then try again. Even if they are what you remembered, there's a chance that, while you enjoyed them, they were not at their prime yet back a few years ago when you first tried them in Paris.
 
The box code says August 2006.

Some mooch friends have taken notice--and they are friends, too... I've got to hide the box until my order of connies comes in. That should keep everybody happy.
 
CigaryGuy07 said:
So with 6 months of age, they should be OK already?
Click to expand...

I don't think there is really any way of telling if they are "okay" unless you do what bfreebern suggested and give them a try.

bfreebern said:
Have one now, then go back to them every 6-12 months and see how they are progressing.
Click to expand...

Just stating the obvious, but what might be "okay" to one person might not be to another. I'm keeping my box stored away for much longer as I don't have any problem waiting since fortunately I've got so many other good smokes to keep me busy in the meantime.
 
i'd let them sit until at least august. i have a box of PSD4's from may '04 and i have smoked one a year every may from it and i'm really looking forward to this may again.

bruce
 
Well, last Wednesday we had a spell of freakishly warm weather, so I sat outside with some homework and lit one up. Verrrrry tasty. I have no experience with aged cigars, and no sense of how they'll improve as the months and years go by, but I'm definitely happy that I have a whole box to keep around!

I'll probably smoke one for graduation in May, and let the rest take their sweet time. Thanks to everybody for the advice.
 
If you like a stronger full bodied smoke an AUG 06 box should be smoking fine just now. I like the PSD4 punch when they're young, but I also like the way they age. I've been putting away a box a year for about 4 years now, and the 02 PSD4's (my oldest) are an amazing smoke. Yes, the "gut punch" is mostly gone, but the flavor development is outstanding with lots of thick creamy smoke. Very yummy. But I still like the young strength too, so I've got a 5er out of my latest box (NOV 06) in my reach in and the rest are sleeping with their brothers in deep storage. It is a real treat to dig down deep and pull out a 4-5 year old smoke, something to enjoy for years to come.

So you need to decide what your personal preference is, and if your not sure, smoke a few now, wait a few months and smoke a few more. But if you find you like the aged quality of the smoke, then you need to start getting long term storage stock.

Enjoy
 
Try one every 6 months. In 5 years, you will still have over half a box and they will probably be smoking great by then. In the meantime, you get some experience with cigar aging and how the flavor profile changes over time.
 
This is yet another seemingly simple question that really has several considerations blended into it. As a result, we see a range of answers put forth by the members. Let me toss in my two cents.

1. If you are NOT familiar with recent vintage PSD4 and how they perform over a 1-5 year time frame AND you care to discover how these cigars will develop.
Then then best course of action would be the "Sample Over Time" strategy. Bfreebern and several others mentioned this but let me give you my spin.

a. Smoke one or two after resting the box for about 2-3 weeks. This will tell you how the cigar will smoke at its "youngest." This is an important starting point as a fair number of cigar smokers really relish the upfront character of certain young Habanos. Even if you find that you do not, you should familiarize yourself with this aspect of the cigar in question to establish a baseline for subsequent comparisons.

It's beneficial to smoke more than a single specimen especially if you are not familiar with the cigar. The more you try, the more accurate and reliable an impression of the cigar you will develop.

I'd also recommend you get a little notebook and start recording your impressions of the cigars you smoke. Write down what you drank while smoking, if anything, and also any notable details about the setting, food you ate prior, etc. This is a memory aid and is useful for all smokers but especially so for those who are new to the hobby.

b. Smoke another pair in three months. Then another pair every three months afterwards. I find this schedule appropriate for the majority of smokers who do not intend to buy smokes for aging or who will not stock large quantities. Exactly how appropriate this is for you will be a function of how much you stock and how frequently you smoke.

If your aim is to build a substantial aging inventory, then the approaches get more complicated. We'll leave that as a subject for another day.

Practically, the only difference between a six month and three month sampling schedule is that the former will make you work through the box more slowly and the latter will let you enjoy them more frequently and potentially catch any significant changes.

c. Once you find that the cigar is at a point where it's really rocking your world, do two things. First, start smoking the hell out of them. Second, order another box.

When the second box comes in, sample OTT ("off the truck") again and then either store it undisturbed until the sweet spot timing is reached or try a few between young and the sweet spot just to be sure. Since you're sampling less, you'll have more cigars and will be able to extend the experiment further out in time to see how further aging works for this cigar.

It is really only after you've become familiar with a given cigar that it makes any sense to sock away a box untouched for an undetermined amount of time. In fact, I'd say that for most smokers, the wisdom in the adage that "any Cuban benefits from aging" is far outweighed by the loss of what one might learn by experiencing how a cigar develops as it ages.

Wilkey
 
Ginseng said:
This is yet another seemingly simple question that really has several considerations blended into it. As a result, we see a range of answers put forth by the members. Let me toss in my two cents.

1. If you are NOT familiar with recent vintage PSD4 and how they perform over a 1-5 year time frame AND you care to discover how these cigars will develop.
Then then best course of action would be the "Sample Over Time" strategy. Bfreebern and several others mentioned this but let me give you my spin.

a. Smoke one or two after resting the box for about 2-3 weeks. This will tell you how the cigar will smoke at its "youngest." This is an important starting point as a fair number of cigar smokers really relish the upfront character of certain young Habanos. Even if you find that you do not, you should familiarize yourself with this aspect of the cigar in question to establish a baseline for subsequent comparisons.

It's beneficial to smoke more than a single specimen especially if you are not familiar with the cigar. The more you try, the more accurate and reliable an impression of the cigar you will develop.

I'd also recommend you get a little notebook and start recording your impressions of the cigars you smoke. Write down what you drank while smoking, if anything, and also any notable details about the setting, food you ate prior, etc. This is a memory aid and is useful for all smokers but especially so for those who are new to the hobby.

b. Smoke another pair in three months. Then another pair every three months afterwards. I find this schedule appropriate for the majority of smokers who do not intend to buy smokes for aging or who will not stock large quantities. Exactly how appropriate this is for you will be a function of how much you stock and how frequently you smoke.

If your aim is to build a substantial aging inventory, then the approaches get more complicated. We'll leave that as a subject for another day.

Practically, the only difference between a six month and three month sampling schedule is that the former will make you work through the box more slowly and the latter will let you enjoy them more frequently and potentially catch any significant changes.

c. Once you find that the cigar is at a point where it's really rocking your world, do two things. First, start smoking the hell out of them. Second, order another box.

When the second box comes in, sample OTT ("off the truck") again and then either store it undisturbed until the sweet spot timing is reached or try a few between young and the sweet spot just to be sure. Since you're sampling less, you'll have more cigars and will be able to extend the experiment further out in time to see how further aging works for this cigar.

It is really only after you've become familiar with a given cigar that it makes any sense to sock away a box untouched for an undetermined amount of time. In fact, I'd say that for most smokers, the wisdom in the adage that "any Cuban benefits from aging" is far outweighed by the loss of what one might learn by experiencing how a cigar develops as it ages.

Wilkey
Click to expand...


Dude! Sometimes you trip me out! :laugh:
 
Hey Alan, cut me some slack! :p

I had my first cigar in about four weeks today so I was seriously pent up. :laugh:

I'm better now.

Wilkey
 
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